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「神様の特訓」 (Kami-sama no Tokkun)
“God’s Special Training”
After a somewhat feverish start with the arrival of Aki last time, the story changes gears to a more humorous and setup-like tone with the introduction of Hibino’s N University friend, Karahari Kuuko (Sawashiro Miyuki).
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「千房 離反す」 (Chifusa Rihansu)
“Chifusa Defects”
If I’m not going to give this anime an impartial and unbiased first look, is there anyone else out there who will? Chances are no, so if you’re still interested in hearing me out, bear with me for a moment before jumping to any predetermined conclusions. Strap yourself in. This is a long post.
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「私とあなたと生徒会」 (Watashi to Anata to Seitokai)
“Me, You, and the Student Council”
I may not have been overly excited about Dogakobo’s adaptation of a “loose lesbian” comedy, but this second episode was amusing enough to make me want to watch a lot more. There’s a certain appeal to anime that manga simply doesn’t have and this episode was a perfect example of it.
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「チーズ “Fromage”」 (Chiizu)
“Cheese”
Alright, get ready for round two of “Why I love Ikoku Meiro so much.”
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「小さな少女の願い」 (Chisana Shoujo no Negai)
“A Little Girl’s Wish”
You really can’t judge a book by its cover it seems, as this second episode of Ro-Kyu-Bu had me thinking that the story would work really well in a live-action drama. From the instrumental version of the “Shoot” opening theme to sixth grade Tomoka trying to deny her love for basketball, I’m pleasantly surprised by what I’ve seen so far. Don’t let the character designs fool you, there’s some pretty good drama in this light novel adaptation.
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「ルリ色の絆」 (Ruri-iro no Kizuna)
“Lapis Lazuli-Colored Bond”
Much like I had hoped, this second episode slows the frantic pace down and sets the foundation for the story. It even surprised me a bit with how many different aspects were built up, reaffirming my faith in Sunrise’s staff to put together an original story that has some depth to it. The first episode may not have been all that impressive, but combined with this second one, Sacred Seven is off to a great start.
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「貧乏神インスペクト+」 (Binbougami Insupekuto)
“God of Poverty Inspection”
Local deities in the 21st century are what it’s all about in the adaptation of mangaka duo FLIPFLOPs’ 2007 fantasy comedy series. At first glance, the character designs are reminiscent of the ones seen in the Touhou Project anime. Replace the demons and youkai with gods and we have Nekogami Yaoyorozu — or at least, that’s the immediate visual impression that AIC PLUS+’s anime gives off.
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「エンド・オブ・アース」 (Endo obu Aasu)
“End of Earth”
When it comes to romantic comedies that tend to revolve around one, maybe two, gimmicky plot devices, the animation quality, character designs, and character personalities go a long way toward the overall appeal.
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「これからが彼女たちのはじまり」 (Kore kara ga Kanajo-tachi no Hajimari)
“It’s the Beginning of These Girls from Here On”
Fans of the IDOLM@STER franchise should be happy about this incredibly faithful adaptation, as it felt like I was watching someone play the Xbox 360 game it’s based on before my very eyes. The twelve aspiring female idols (and one producer) constantly broke the fourth wall to communicate with the nameless cameraman (soon to be producer), whose unvoiced lines were subtitled for most of the episode.
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「あまつかぜ」 (Amatsukaze)
“Heavenly Wind”
Production I.G and female mangaka group CLAMP’s latest addition to the Blood franchise is here, and it uses the same concept as the variations before it in an all-new story. That concept entails a high school girl named Kisaragi Saya (Mizuki Nana), who uses the “Goshintou” katana passed down by her father’s shrine to defeat ancient vampiric demons known as “Furukimono” that prey on humans.